Apparatus for closing or opening water-tight bulkhead-doors.



No. 701,156. Patented May 27, I902.

w. & A. n. CRAWFORD.

APPARATUS FOR CLOSING 0B UPENING WATER TIGHT BULKHEAD DOORS,

(Applica tion filed Aug. 26, 1901.

(No Model.)

The mums PETERS no. PHoTouTno" WASHNGTON, u. c

LII

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM CRAWFORD AND ALEXANDER ROBINSON CRAWVFORD, OF GLASGOW, SCOTLAND.

APPARATUS FOR CLOSING OR OPENING WATER-TIGHT BULKHEAD-DOORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 701,156, dated May 27, 1902.

Application filed August 26,1901. Serial No. 73,253. (No model.)

To all whont it may concern:

Be it known that we,\VILLIAM CRAWFORD and ALEXANDER ROBINSON CRAWFORD, citi- Zens of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at 46 Muse Lane, Glasgow, Scotland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Closing or Opening\Vater-TightBulkhead-Doors, (for which application for patent has been made in Great Britain, No. 1,962, dated January 29, 1901,) of which the following is a specification.

This invention, which relates to bulkhead doors of the kind adapted to be closed on the rising of water in the ships bilges and is a development of that described in the specification of our United States Patent No. 611,833, of 1898, has for its object to simplify the gear employed for automatically closing and opening such doors and to adapt it particularly for operating horizontally-sliding doors.

The invention is illustrated by the accompanying drawing, the figure of which is an elevation of the door-frame and arrangement of mechanism in the case'of a horizontally moving bulkhead-door. 7

As shown by the drawing, a horizontal cylinder A is fixed on the back of the door B and is fitted with a hollow piston C, fixed to the bulkhead or framework D of the doorway E, or a solid piston is fixed to the door and the cylinder secured to the framework. Through the hollow piston C or through the cylinder end oil or other fluid is admitted by a pipe connection F from an accumulator or a pressure air vessel G, containing the oil, which on being forced into the cylinder A traverses and closes the sliding door B. The pressure is maintained constantly on the said cylinder A, so that the door B will be closed when released from looking or catch devices which serve to hold the door B open and which are freed by the automatic action upon them of a diaphragm H, actuated from an air vessel I in the ships bilges on the raising of the water in the latter.

' preferably extends upward to the deck N.

The two shafts are connected by a sliding clutch O, which when engaging the lower or pinion shaft L, permits of the door B being opened from the deck N and retained in the open position by a pawl P and ratchet Q or like means. The clutch O is held in engagement with the shaft L by a spring R or by gravity, but is arranged to be raised out of engagement by means of a lever S, actuated from the diaphragm H, when the latter is automatically'brought into action by-the airpressure on accumulation of water in the shipsbilge's. On the raising of the clutch O theshaft L is freedjand the door B is closed automatically by the pressure in the accumulator or the air vessel G, containing the oil or otherfiuid. \Vhen the clutch O is again put into engagement, the door B may be opened from the deck by a hand-lever T or other gear operating the vertical shaft M, the opening movement of the door forcing back the oil or other fluid into the accumulator.

Having now described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. Apparatus for automatically closing bulkhead-doors for ships comprising a liquidpressureaccumulator,acylindersecuredupon the movable door, piping connecting said accumulator and said cylinder, a shaft geared to a rack or racks on said door, the said shaft being normally held stationary by a clutch, and means forreleasingsaid clutch operated by a diaphragm'cautomatically actuated by the rise of waterlin the ships bilges.

2. Apparatus for automatically opening and closing bulkhead-doors for ships, com

prising a liquid-pressure accumulator, a cylinder secured upon the movable door, piping connecting said accumulator and said cylinder, a piston within said cylinder, a shaft geared to a rack or racks on said door, a clutchshaft normally clutched to the geared shaft, capable of rotation in one direction to open the door, but held by a pawl and ratchet to prevent rotation in the opposite direction, and means, operated by a diaphragm automatically actuated by the rise of water in the ships bilges, for releasing said clutch to permit of the door being closed by the fluid-pressure.

0. Apparatus for closing and opening water ICO ' tight bulkhead-doors, comprising in combination a cylinder secured upon the movable door, a hollow piston and piston-rod, upon which said cylinder works, secured to the bulkhead or framing of the doorway, a pipe connection to the end of said hollow pistonrod from an accumulator, a shaft having bearings in brackets on the door-framing and having spur-wheels fitted upon it, racks on the movable door in gear with said spur-wheels, a second shaft in line with the spur-wheel shaft, a sliding clutch on the second shaft normally engaging the spur-wheel shaft, a device for withdrawing said clutch to allow the door to beclosed by the fluid-pressure, a hand-1ever for operating the. clutch-shaft to open the door, and a ratchet and pawl for preventing the closing of the door until the withdrawal of the clutch by the releasing device, substantially as described.

4. In apparatus for closing and opening water-tight bulkhead-doors, means for normally retaining the door in open position, said means consisting, in combination with a bulkhead-door havingracks upon it and a shaft fitted with spur-wheels in gear with said racks, of a shaft in line with the spur-Wheel shaft, and having a clutch adapted to engage normally with the spur-wheel shaft, a ratchetwheelactuated by the clutch-shaft, and a pawl engaging said ratchet to prevent the shafts from turning by the closing'pressure on the door, substantially as described.

5. In apparatus for closing and opening bulkhead-doors, the means for automatically closing the door consisting, in combination with a bulkhead-door having racks upon it, and a shaft fitted with spur-wheels in gear with said racks, of a cylinder secured upon said door, a hollow piston and piston-rod working in said cylinder, the end of the rod being connected to the bulkhead or framing of the doorway, a pipe connection from said hollow piston-rod to an air-pressure vessel containing oil or other fluid, and a diaphragm operated by the rising of water in the ships WILLIAM CRAWFORD. ALEXANDER ROBINSON CRAWFORD.

\Vitnesses:

WALLACE FAIRWEATHER, J OHN MORTON. 

